The Outlying Islands are all the

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

s that make up the territory of

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, with the exception of

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...

and some smaller islands near its coast. There are 263 islands over 500 m² in Hong Kong, the vast majority of which are located within the

New Territories The New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of Hong Kong. Historically, it ...

, with significant numbers located in

Islands District The Islands District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. It is part of the New Territories. It had a population of 170,900 in 2018. Hong Kong consists of a peninsula and 263 islands. The Islands District consists of some twenty large an ...

in the south and southwest,

Sai Kung District Sai Kung District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China. The district comprises the southern half of the Sai Kung Peninsula, the Clear Water Bay Peninsula in the New Territories and a strip of lan ...

in the southeast, and

Tai Po District Tai Po District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. The suburban district covers the areas of Tai Po New Town (including areas such as Tai Po Market, , Tai Po Industrial Estate, Tai Wo Estate), Tai Po Tau, Tai Po Kau, Hong Lok Yuen, Ti ...

and North District in the northeast. The term "outlying" is not strictly defined and in some cases islands very close to Hong Kong Island are not included. Inconvenient transport meant that development came relatively late compared to other parts of Hong Kong, and many islands are still undeveloped. Many of the outlying islands are sparsely populated and remain largely rural, although there are significant traditional villages and towns on the islands of

Lantau Lantau Island (also Lantao Island, Lan Tao) is the largest island in Hong Kong, located West of Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula, and is part of the New Territories. Administratively, most of Lantau Island is part of the Islands Dis ...

Peng Chau Peng Chau is a small island located off the north-eastern coast of Lantau Island, Hong Kong. It is known locally for its temples, fishing industry and seafood. Geography Peng Chau has an area of and a perimeter of about . The tallest point ...

, Lamma, and

Cheung Chau Cheung Chau (lit. "Long Island") is an island southwest of Hong Kong Island. It is nicknamed the 'dumbbell island (啞鈴島)' due to its shape. It has been inhabited for longer than most other places in Hong Kong, and had a population of 2 ...

. However, urban development has been made. For instance, the island of

Tsing Yi Tsing Yi, sometimes referred to as Tsing Yi Island, is an island in the urban area of Hong Kong, to the northwest of Hong Kong Island and south of Tsuen Wan. With an area of , the island has extended drastically by reclamation along almost all ...

became part of

Tsuen Wan New Town Tsuen Wan New Town is a new town in Hong Kong. It spans Tsuen Wan, Kwai Chung and the eastern part of Tsing Yi Island. Traditionally, the administrative officials of Tsuen Wan managed the area of Tsuen Wan proper, Kwai Chung, Tsing Yi Islan ...

in the late 1970s, and is now linked to the rest of Hong Kong by several road and rail bridges. In the 1980s,

Discovery Bay Discovery Bay (DB) is a resort town on Lantau Island, Hong Kong. It consists of mixed, primarily residential, development, in particular upmarket residential development and private and public recreational facilities, including garden houses, ...

was privately developed as an upmarket residential area on Lantau, served by a fast ferry service to the

central business district A central business district (CBD) is the commercial and business centre of a city. It contains commercial space and offices, and in larger cities will often be described as a financial district. Geographically, it often coincides with the "city ...

. In the 1990s, the development of the new

Hong Kong Airport Hong Kong International Airport is Hong Kong's main airport, built on reclaimed land on the island of Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or ''Chek Lap Kok Airport'', to distinguish ...

, off the north shore of Lantau, led to the creation of a road and rail link to that island and the development of

Tung Chung Tung Chung, meaning " eastern stream", is an area on the northwestern coast of Lantau Island, Hong Kong. One of the most recent new towns, it was formerly a rural fishing village beside Tung Chung Bay, and along the delta and lower courses of T ...

, previously a small settlement, into a new town adjacent to the airport. As a result of this improved access, further developments on Lantau followed, including a road link to Discovery Bay, and the development of

Hong Kong Disneyland Resort The Hong Kong Disneyland Resort is a resort built and owned by Hong Kong International Theme Parks Limited, a joint venture of the Government of Hong Kong and The Walt Disney Company in Hong Kong on reclaimed land beside Penny's Bay, at the n ...

. The more rural islands, and the rural areas of Lantau, are popular recreation spots and weekend getaway destinations for those living in the more densely populated parts of the territory.

Ferry services

Ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

Kai-to The kai-to, sometimes kaito or kaido () is a type of small, motorised ferry that operates in Hong Kong. They are usually used to serve remote coastal settlements in the Outlying Islands, Hong Kong, territory's outlying islands.: "Cargo junks o ...

services to the outlying islands run as follows: *

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

Lamma Island Lamma Island, also known as Y Island or Pok Liu Chau or simply Pok Liu, is the third largest island in Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Islands District. Name Lamma Island was named Lamma only because of a chart reading error by ...

Mui Wo Mui Wo is a rural town on the eastern coast of Lantau Island in Hong Kong. The 2011 Census recorded 5,485 people living in Mui Wo and its environs. Mui Wo is located on Silvermine Bay, so named for the silver mines that were once worked along ...

and

Park Island Park Island is a private housing estate located at Ma Wan, an island in Tsuen Wan, New Territories, Hong Kong. It was mainly developed by Sun Hung Kai Properties as part of the Ma Wan Development joint venture project and completed from 20 ...

(Tsing Yi). * Sam Ka Tsuen to

Tung Lung Island Tung Lung Chau, previously known as Nam Tong Island or Nam Fat Tong is an island located off the tip of the Clear Water Bay Peninsula in the New Territories of Hong Kong. It is also referred by Hong Kong people as Tung Lung To or Tung Lung Islan ...

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

and

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

Po Toi Island Po Toi (commonly , originally ) is the main island of the Po Toi Islands and the southernmost island of Hong Kong, with an area of 3.69 km². Name It is said that the island used to produce dried seaweeds (), which were shaped like the catt ...

Ma Liu Shui Ma Liu Shui is an area in Sha Tin District, in the New Territories, Hong Kong. The area faces Tide Cove (Sha Tin Hoi) and Tolo Harbour. The Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong Science Park are located in Ma Liu Shui. Name ety ...

to Grass Island *

Tuen Mun Tuen Mun or Castle Peak is an area near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories, Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in what is now Hong Kong and can be dated to the Neolithic period. In the more re ...

Wong Shek Wong Shek (Chinese language, Chinese: 黃石), or Wong Ma Tei (Chinese language, Chinese: 黃麻地), is an area in the northern part of the Sai Kung Peninsula in Hong Kong. It is under the administration of Tai Po District. In the area, there are p ...

pier to Grass Island *

Sha Tau Kok Sha Tau Kok is a closed city, closed town in Hong Kong. The last remaining major settlement in the Frontier Closed Area, it is Hong Kong's northernmost town. Geography The small rural village of Sha Tau Kok is located on the northern sh ...

pier to

Kat O Kat O () also named Crooked Island, is an island in Northeast Hong Kong. Administration Administratively, Kat O is part of North District. It is a recognized village under the New Territories Small House Policy. Geography Kat O is located in ...

References

{{Peninsulas of Hong Kong Islands of Hong Kong

Ferry services

See also

References